Police Officer Gregory Chin was off duty when two civilians were slashed, stabbed.

Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly today
presented Police Officer Gregory Chin with a Certificate of Recognition for his
bravery in an Oct. 6 knife attack in the 17th Precinct in Manhattan’s Murray Hill. He
was joined by Chief of Department Joseph Esposito; Assistant Chief James Hall,
the commanding officer of the Transit Bureau; and Captain Thomas Connolly,
commanding officer of Transit District 4, to which Officer Chin is assigned.
Officer Chin’s girlfriend, Violet Virina, also attended the ceremony.

“Officer Chin not only helped to save the
lives of two defenseless people that Saturday morning – he prevented further
violence from occurring, at great risk to his own life,” Commissioner Kelly
said. “He encountered a situation that New York City Police officers face far more
frequently than the public knows, and his quick action represents the best of
police service.”

The certificate presented to Officer Chin
reads:

“Certificate of Recognition Presented to
Police Officer Gregory Chin who, on Saturday, October 6, 2007, without regard
for his personal safety, confronted an armed assailant and ended a vicious
attack on an innocent woman, saving her life. Officer Chin acted in the finest
traditions of the New York City Police Department, and brought great credit upon
himself, the NYPD and the City of New
York.”

At the time of the attacks, Officer Chin
was off-duty on vacation and exiting a diner when he saw a bloody commotion in
the vicinity of Second
Avenue and 35th Street in Manhattan. Earlier that
morning, an emotionally disturbed man had severely slashed the chef of an area
restaurant and then stolen knives from the kitchen, which he used to stab an
elderly woman on the street. When Officer Chin came upon the scene, he
identified himself and ordered the man to drop his weapons. After the man
refused and lunged at Officer Chin with the knives in hand, Officer Chin fired
once, striking him and bringing the ordeal to a close. It was the first time he
had fired his service weapon at a perpetrator. He is a six-and-a-half year
veteran of the Department.